In playing the game of baseball, the runner frequently slides into one of the bases to avoid being tagged "out" when a ball is thrown to a player for the opposing team who is waiting at the base. The foot of the sliding player sometimes becomes lodged against the base which is fixed in the ground and the sliding player is injured. The injury may be a twisted leg, ankle or foot or even a broken bone. It has been estimated that, in little league and playground baseball, approximately ninety percent (90%) of the injuries are due to sliding into fixed bases. These injuries also occur with professional baseball players. U.S. Pat. No. 2,405,492, to Corbett discloses a base which is releasably secured to an anchor. The base does not break-away when a player slides into the base. U.S. Pat. No. 3,862,756 to Selliken discloses a base having a first member mounted flush with the ground and a second member magnetically held on the first member. The members are further formed with engaging ribs and grooves to assist in holding the members in place. The second member is dislodged when hit forcefully by a player. Hall, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,266,768 discloses a break-away base which has hook and loop fastening means to connect the base portion to the flush mounted support portion. U.S. Pat. No. 4,723,779 to Hauser and U.S. Pat. No. 5,290,028 to Bartoli, both disclose anchored bases with tapered sides.
Despite the existence of these prior art devices, there are still a large number of baseball players suffering injuries due to bases which are not dislodged when the player forcefully contacts the base. There is a need for a base which has a fixed member with inclined sides that, should the player's foot go beneath the ground level, directs the player's foot against the moveable member and assists in dislodgement of the moveable member.